


Firefly

by Crimson_Phantom



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Handplates (Undertale), M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-25
Updated: 2019-08-25
Packaged: 2020-09-26 02:51:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,195
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20382472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crimson_Phantom/pseuds/Crimson_Phantom
Summary: Grillby notices Gaster sitting quietly in the bar one night.





	Firefly

Gaster was silent at the end of the bar. Apart from ordering his food and sitting at the corner nursing a flask he brought with him Grillby was certain contained a much better liquor than he had in stock. Gaster had only acknowledged Grillby on entering and Grillby letting him know he would close up soon hours later. He'd been quiet as he'd asked Grillby to give him a few minutes alone.  
  
As he started clearing out the bar and breaking down his night routine, Grillby kept turning his gaze from the bar to glance at Gaster. If he didn't know his old friend any better, he would have said Gaster was brooding. He really did wish he knew what to say, but he didn't. Not only because giving verbal comfort wasn't his thing nor would Gaster appreciate it right now, but also because the whole fact that Asgore had existed in Gaster's life in a romantic sense at all still surprised him still. Yet Gaster was his closest friend, he owed it to him to at least try.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me about Asgore?" he asked and instantly regretted the question by the look on Gasters face.  
  
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Gaster turn away from where he'd been staring out the window to glare at him. "Since when does my personal life interest you?"  
  
Okay, so he'd asked for that. "You're not 'other people', Gaster," he said, sparing Gaster a glance before turning back to the tables again.  
  
"Am I not?"  
  
"No." Grillby spoke sympathically.  
  
The silence stretched between them again for what seemed like hours as Gaster continued to drink his flask and lit a cigarette. The only sounds was the noises of Grillby setting up the chairs and Gasters soft exhales. This time Grillby decided not to break it. He almost jumped when Gaster's soft voice spoke. "And what would you have said had I told you about Asgore?" A quick glance told Grillby that Gaster was once again looking at him with that instense, studying gaze.  
  
Fuck... Grillby shrugged. "Other than told you to be careful?... Don't know," he said as he continued to wipe down the table, hoping Gaster would stop staring at him like that.  
  
"Don't know?..." Gaster asked; there was a very faint hint of steelness in his tone. "I think you do, Grillby...."  
  
"Gaster, what -"  
  
Much to his relief however, Gaster interrupted him, snuffing out his cigarette and sounding more narrating himself than speaking to Gribbly personally. "Why didn't I notice? I should have noticed, shouldn't I... what I truly was... just a temporary warm place... But I am trained to notice things, I am more than qualified to notice. And yet I failed to see what was right there in my face, someone so very close to me was this way and not as it seemed. Of course looking back now, it is easy to see the signs, but at the time..." Gaster trailed off and sighed softly taking another sip from his flask and crossed his legs. "Now it's too late..."  
  
"Maybe you didn't want to notice," Grillby said quietly. "Maybe you told yourself if you didn't admit it, it'd just work out."  
  
"Is that so?...Perhaps..." Once again Gaster sounded mildly dissociated yet there was also a touch of sorrow in his tone.  
  
Grillby took one hand from his task and laid it on Gaster's. Expecting the skeleton to recoil to the action he felt Gaster's ghostly fingers cover his and slip between the digits for a moment, before Gaster pulled his hand away. After a moment Grillby returned his own hand to the dishrag to finish wiping down the counter before tossing it on the sink and taking a tray of dishes to the back.  
  
Again the silence stretched between them until Grillby had returned and finally spoke. "I notice, Gaster," he said quietly, keeping his tone neutral as he forced himself not to look at Gaster.  
  
For a moment he thought Gaster wasn't going to reply. But then he eventually spoke. "Do you?"  
  
"Yeah. Always have." Now Grillby did look at Gaster; he saw that Gaster was looking at him, a much softer stare this time.  
  
"I see..." Gaster said, after another moment of silence. Grillby didn't know what to say, so again he said nothing. Suddenly Gaster spoke again as Grillby shut off the lights with only the internal glow of the fire monster keeping them from total darkness as the warm fire light danced across the room like fireflies and across Gaster's face as he muttered quietly. "I do not wish to go home." He down the last of his flask, staring at it's emptiness in annoyance and put it away.  
  
Grillby looked perplexed. "Huh? Why not?..."  
  
Gaster paused. "I do not wish to go home to an empty house, a place that I -" He trailed off for a moment, then sighed softly, "A place I wished never to be. The frustration. The memories. The pain. Emptiness... It is not just the surface world I miss," he added.  
  
"Don't we all..." Grillby hesitated the added quickly, hoping he wasn't taken the wrong way. "Where do you want to go then?" he asked, glancing back at Gaster.  
  
"Your house is right behind the bar, isn't it?... If you don't mind of course," Gaster added, in true Gaster fashion.  
  
"Course I don't mind. Why would I?" But Gaster didn't answer him. "Just lemme lock up first and we'll go out the back..." He paused again, looking at Gaster take out his empty flask again with a sigh and simply strike up another cigarette. "Not sure I've got any decent whiskey though that you might like... my speciality brew isn't heh well it taste like piss but does it's job." He said, glancing over his shoulder before locking the front door and turning back toward Gaster. "I have some good tea I found however, you might like-"  
  
"I don't want god damn tea..." Grillby immediently froze taken back by the harshness in that reply nor the firey glow in the normally stoic skeleton's eye. Gaster closed his eyes, sighed and spoke again muh more quietly. "I'm certain you have something somewhere here that's drinkable. I don't care for the quality, not today. Just something that does its purpose."  
  
Grillby stared at Gaster a moment. "Are you planning on getting drunk, Dr. Gaster?" He quipped gently.  
  
Through the firelight in the semi-darkness he saw Gaster nod. "Most definitely," he said as he turned to look at him before turning away to drag the last few puffs off his cigarette. "Very drunk actually. Unless you have any objections?"  
  
Grillby shrugged. "Nah... Just hate to see you so messed up over someone like that," he added flatly. "He's not worth it, you know." He bit his tongue hard; he hadn't meant to add the last few words.  
  
After a moment Gaster spoke, his voice void of emotion and like cool steel. "No, I imagine not. But then again, is anyone?" He asked looking back at him.  
  
Grillby didn't have a reply to that. So he just led Gaster behind the bar to the back entrance rather than provoke Gaster further.  
  
Before leaving the backroom, he found he grabbed a bottle of some of his self made mule not expecting Gaster to enjoy it but handed the bottle to him directly reminding him of the strength.

Gaster has taken to the bottle as soon as it was handed to him and turned it up against Grillbys objections though he knew better than to push too far. Being a bar tender cor years he saw this far too often. 

Just never expected to see it from someone he looked up to so much.  
  
Once inside Grillby's home, Grillby locked the front door, pulled the curtains, lit a couple of lamps with his own ambient fire setting the room to a warm glow as he dug out two glasses from the small kitchen and some soda. Gaster had already collapsed onto the sofa and was sitting just staring into the distance. "Here," Grillby held out a glass with a healthy mix of soda in it. "I'd mix that."  
  
Gaster started at him but took it. "Thank you, Grillby."

Attempting to pour the liquor in the glass himself Grillby gently took his hand to steady it. "Allow me?" He said gently. 

"Oh... why thank you." Gaster hesitated and handed him the bottle. "Are you going to join me?"  
  
Grillby shrugged. "Sure, if you don't mind."  
  
Gaster smiled and gave a soft chuckle. "Ah, dear Grillby, I am slightly enibrated but I'm no fool. Do not if you are merely joining me in order to ensure I do not consume the entire bottle, rest assured I shall not... Two maybe would sucifice. Maybe three or four..." he held up his glass, "its not that bad you know. However, do not let me stop you from actually drinking for a change. In fact be my guest if its social."

Grillby smiled and sat down next to him. "Sure thing, Gaster..."  
  
A COUPLE OF HOURS LATER  
  
"Why is it when one wishes to get numb from intoxication, one cannot?" Gaster asked, stumbling leaning heavily on Grillby as Grillby attempted to guided him up the stairs. "I'm sure you get asked that alot.. "  
  
"Don't know, Gaster," Grillby said. "Sometimes I do. Mostly the opposite. Careful for the steps now."  
  
Wavering unsteadily and somewhat surprised exactly how much heavy Gaster was, they reached the landing and Grillby tucked his arm around Gaster, tugging him near until Gaster was pressing against him, chuckling softly as he let his head lay on the slightly taller monsters shoulder and nuzzle his neck. "Can I say you're much more cool to the touch than I expected?" Gaster said simply then chuckled. "It feels nice..."

Grillby grimaced and felt a shiver from this action.  
  
Maybe he should... 

He could... 

Gaster wouldn't mind at all, if anything it was welcomed.

But he couldn’t; wouldn't; he couldn't betray Gaster's trust like that, his friendship, his love. It would be far too easy and all that would happen was that Gaster would be embarassed and badly hurt. And more than hurt, he'd be betrayed by the one person in the world he felt comfortable talking to betrayed him. Gaster would get over Asgore in time, it'd probably take him a bit of time honestly, but he would get over him. However, he would never get over Grillby betraying him.  
  
Grillby guided Gaster into his bedroom and lowered him down onto the bed and squatted down to tug Gaster's shoes off. "You want to get undressed, Gaster? I have some pajamas that'd probably fit you if you want." He asked not looking up  
  
Gaster patted his hand and tugged at his shoulders slightly. "No, thank you. I'll just lie down and rest my eyes a few minutes then I'll be fine." He shifted unsteadily and fell back on the pillow as he continued to fuss with Grillbys collar tugging him forward. "You coming to bed?" He smiled.  
  
Grillby sighed.

"Yeah I am. But I'm sleeping downstairs." He tugged the cover out from under him and put them over Gaster. "You get some sleep, call me if you need me. Here, lemme get those..." he said, then leaning down over the skeleton and carefully taking Gaster's glasses off and putting them on the nightstand.  
  
"Will you keep them safe for me?" Gaster asked, gazing up at Grillby. His tone suddenly serious.  
  
Memories of Gaster recovering from the accident he lost the bone in his hands and Grillby bringing him food and helping him around his home came to mind as he found he had to swallow hard before answering. "Who, Gaster," he said, taking Gaster's hand letting his eyes fall on the hole. "Besides. Where you think you gonna go?"  
  
"It's nothing... just incase, you know?" Gaster looked very somber for a moment as he closed his eyes briefly, allowing himself a smile that didn't reach his eyes."You always take care of me and I've ruined everything I touch..." He reached up to cup Grillby's face before letting his hand fall. "I can't lose you too and think I will... just thought perhaps if no one was around you would take care of them too..."  
  
"Yeah, Gaster. Of course..." Grillby only agreed as he figured Gaster was talking out of his head as then soft snores drifted from the skeleton. "You don't ruin everything you touch and I won't leave you, I promise you that." He bent over Gaster and lightly stroked his skull.  
  
Gaster murmured in his sleep and shifted across the bed a little, leaving space for Grillby to join him if he so wished. After a moment of thought, Grillby let go of Gaster's hand long enough to pull his shoes off. Then moving carefully he lay down next to Gaster and put his arm over him. "Just sleep, Gaster," he said, stroking Gaster's head for a second time before rolling over in the opposite direction. "I'll always be here to take care of you...."


End file.
